Rate top gamesGrand Theft Auto 4 is a beautiful game in it's own right; Liberty City is grimy and crime ridden. You live in the bottom rungs of society, ignored by the upper crust except when your criminal services come in handy... you find yourself trapped in a loop of crime that seems inescapable.
Unfortunately, the game is hindered by the game engine and it's 2008 gaming philosophy. The cars are floaty like you're driving underwater and the game camera is very low to the ground... combine that with the claustrophobic streets of Liberty City and there's few times you get to just open up the throttles and enjoy the drive.
The combat is also awkward and very obviously dated.
But the worst part: Failing a mission is BRUTAL. They take your guns and money, then they set you far away from the mission start. "Replaying" a mission means spending time rebuying all your stuff with depleted funds and driving across the entire city to hit triggers just to try again.
All in all, it's got a great and engaging story mired by an old gaming philosophy. Back in 2008 when I might have bought one game every few months this grind would have been normal. Nowadays I've got hundreds of games at my fingertips. I like difficult challenges, but I don't like my time wasted.
Unfortunately, the game is hindered by the game engine and it's 2008 gaming philosophy. The cars are floaty like you're driving underwater and the game camera is very low to the ground... combine that with the claustrophobic streets of Liberty City and there's few times you get to just open up the throttles and enjoy the drive.
The combat is also awkward and very obviously dated.
But the worst part: Failing a mission is BRUTAL. They take your guns and money, then they set you far away from the mission start. "Replaying" a mission means spending time rebuying all your stuff with depleted funds and driving across the entire city to hit triggers just to try again.
All in all, it's got a great and engaging story mired by an old gaming philosophy. Back in 2008 when I might have bought one game every few months this grind would have been normal. Nowadays I've got hundreds of games at my fingertips. I like difficult challenges, but I don't like my time wasted.
«Waste of time»
Other reviews24
Knowing that this game is 16 years old is really mind blowing.
Of course the graphics shows their age, but not to the extent that I was expecting.
The things I loved:
- Very cool, funny, deep, & many times dark writing & character.
- The protagonist is really interesting & written very well.
- The world is nice & brings back that time.
The things I didn't like:
- The VERY boring & repetitive gameplay loop.
- Too many missions that are just basically the same.
- Having to restart the mission from the beginning each time you fail.
- The cars driving is not very solid (I'm on pc)
I would give it a rating of: good - very good.
Of course the graphics shows their age, but not to the extent that I was expecting.
The things I loved:
- Very cool, funny, deep, & many times dark writing & character.
- The protagonist is really interesting & written very well.
- The world is nice & brings back that time.
The things I didn't like:
- The VERY boring & repetitive gameplay loop.
- Too many missions that are just basically the same.
- Having to restart the mission from the beginning each time you fail.
- The cars driving is not very solid (I'm on pc)
I would give it a rating of: good - very good.
I understand that side quests are a major factor in GTA - since It's a really big game -, but my god, why are so many deviating from the main story?
I got hooked by the premise and have played for hours on end just to make progress in what really matters to me, and it's incredibly time-consuming. After the betrayal of Dimitri Rascalov, I feel like most quests lack development. After 20 hours of gameplay, I did myself a favor and quit. Perhaps that's why most people choose to ignore the campaign and do whatever they want, besides following the game's instructions.
Unfortunately, GTA 3, VC, SA, and 4 left me with the same feeling of wasting time. I loved playing them as a child, though.
I got hooked by the premise and have played for hours on end just to make progress in what really matters to me, and it's incredibly time-consuming. After the betrayal of Dimitri Rascalov, I feel like most quests lack development. After 20 hours of gameplay, I did myself a favor and quit. Perhaps that's why most people choose to ignore the campaign and do whatever they want, besides following the game's instructions.
Unfortunately, GTA 3, VC, SA, and 4 left me with the same feeling of wasting time. I loved playing them as a child, though.
«Waste of time»
Pretty good. Graphics were top notch for its time, the story is actually engaging and missions are quite fun
i was only a child when i played this so i did not shit myself because i was freshly potty trained. However, i gurantee if i or you played through this masterpiece again we'd both shit ourselves. 10/10
I was 14 when this game came out, so i was the exact target audience. And they definitely hit the target. Great soundtrack, truly impressive scope (for the time, not at all now), and some great writing for a video game.